Mark Radcliffe: How close have you come to dying?

The question

How close have you come to dying?

Originally asked

The Guardian, to a different person each week, The Q&A

A recurring Guardian Q&A prompt asked directly across respondents and years.

You answer as yourself. Nobody on FLAPSS answers as anybody else.

Mark Radcliffe

Recorded said elsewhere, not written here

Throat and neck cancer in 2018. They told me six to eight months if it hadn’t been caught.

The Q&A, The Guardian, 23 August 2025 source ↗

Others on this question

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Andy Serkis English actor

I made a solo attempt at the Matterhorn in 1996 and came very close to falling. I waited until the dawn light came, so I could retrace my route, but I was hanging off my ice axes for 45 minutes.

Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 1 July 2017 source ↗

Martin Kemp English musician and actor

In 1995, I discovered I had two brain tumours. The process of having them removed went on for about three years. It was a long and drawn-out time, wondering whether or not I was going to die.

Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 14 July 2018 source ↗

Adam Clayton

When I was drinking, there were many times when I was out for the night and didn’t come back for a week.

Recorded The Q&A, The Guardian, 7 December 2024 source ↗

Joseph Fiennes English actor

Climbing in Tibet, surfing in Australia and a moment ago by a courgette cutter as I dithered over one of these questions.

Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 18 October 2008 source ↗